Collin Sexton scored 28 points on Wednesday as the host Cleveland Cavaliers posted a 108-94 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, who lost three-time All-Star center Joel Embiid to a shoulder injury.
Larry Nance Jr. collected 13 points and a season-high 15 rebounds and Tristan Thompson had 14 and 13, respectively, as the Cavaliers posted their fourth win in five games.
Embiid sustained a left shoulder sprain after a collision with Cleveland center Ante Zizic with 49 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
The 7-foot Embiid winced in pain as he missed both free throw attempts before retreating to the locker room. Embiid briefly returned to the bench in the second quarter before he was ruled out for the contest at halftime.
Embiid's injury is the latest for the 76ers, who are without Ben Simmons after the All-Star guard was injured during Saturday's 119-98 setback in Milwaukee. Simmons is dealing with a nerve impingement in his lower back.
Kevin Love, who finished with 13 points and nine rebounds, drained a 3-pointer to push Cleveland's advantage to 70-50 midway into the third quarter, before Philadelphia answered with 11 straight points.
Josh Richardson capped that surge with a 3-pointer, and Shake Milton and Al Horford later connected from beyond the arc to cut the Cavaliers' lead to 85-80 with just more than nine minutes left in the game.
Thompson's alley-oop dunk and 3-pointers by Love and Sexton highlighted a 16-6 surge to effectively put the game on ice.
Milton scored 20 points and Furkan Korkmaz added 14 for the 76ers, who have dropped seven in a row on the road to fall to 9-21 away from Philadelphia on the season.
Earlier on Wednesday, the NBA fined Embiid $25,000 for making an obscene gesture on the court and using profanity during a live television interview. Those actions occurred during Philadelphia's 129-112 win over Atlanta on Monday, a game in which Embiid scored a career-high 49 points.
Cleveland center Andre Drummond sat out Wednesday's game because of a strained left calf. He is listed as day-to-day by coach J.B. Bickerstaff.
--Field Level Media
